Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

To be honest I am surprised we haven't seen more stores closing at a quicker rate across the globe.

Look at Thorntons recently. They've closed/closing over 170 shops in the UK (although they are trying to make them franchises). Loads of companies are realising they don't need so many shops to sell their product and running stores is a huge outlay.

I am sure GW would do just fine if they slashed half of their shops and let independents take their place. They would still sell shed loads of GW from the net/indy stores. They are competing with themselves and it just doesn't make any sense whatsoever.

Sidstyler wrote:Maybe you're right, maybe they do have to charge more because it costs them more to operate in other countries. Still doesn't change the fact that they're asking for ludicrous amounts of money for little plastic men, and that the full retail price is more than what most people are willing to pay. They can go on insisting that their prices are reasonable or that they have to charge what they do, and they can go on closing stores because that's not enough to convince people to shop there.

Like it's been said though, it sounds like these stores had other problems besides ridiculous prices.

What are they supposed to do, give the figures away for free? GW's not a charity, they have to make money.

It is this sense of entitlement that is ruining the world. If you can't afford to to be in the hobby, go play chess.

This is hilarious!

GW increases prices, disables plpayers buying from online sources...

Closes stores after restrictions on game size, paint schemes and language...

I can understand smaller games being faster, etc... but with such small games, who needs to buy more models?

Words cannot express... and there is not yet a triple facepalm meme...

General Hobbs wrote:What are they supposed to do, give the figures away for free? GW's not a charity, they have to make money.

Don't matter how many times you white-clad defenders say it, that's still not a real argument.

I propose GW close all their stores down. This would then bring the cost of their mini's back down to reality (a few $/£ cheaper).

Seriously.

No other games company has this amount of shops and is probably the reason why we keep getting price rises.

Inflation goes up = wage rise = we get sucker punched.

I happily buy lots of GW and generally don't moan but this is the only reason why we pay so much. For a crap load of stores most of us don't use.

'Cept that's not the only reason their prices go up. Sometimes they just go up because they can. Kirby even said as much in the last (was it the last?) end-of-year statement.

But yeah, their stores and the overheads caused by the stores are what's shattering their bottom line (among other things).

Ledabot wrote:

JOHIRA wrote:

Sir Motor wrote:2.Word banning
We, experience player, use some English based word. Like "Wounds". But In hobby centre, we can’t use it. We must call it "Ki-du"(Translated version "wounds"). We can’t play in English. Even a word.

Holy cow! Really? That's crazy. I wish I had actually played a game so I could see that.

3.Color banning
You painted slann(lizardmen big toad-like wizard) in gold? No place to play.

Wow, that's even crazier.

2.
Our flgs is run by foreigners and they are always taking to each other in um. I don’t know what the language is.... It’s not Japanese or Chinese though.

3.
I’m guessing that is because it resembles Buddha?

2.Korean?
3.Nope. Reason was fluff. as long as I heard.

Miguelsan wrote:

Sir Motor wrote:2.Word banning
We,experience player,use some English based word. Like "Wounds". But In hobby center,we cant use it. We must call it "Ki-du"(Translated version "wounds"). We cant play in English.Even a word.

3.Color banning
You painted slann(lizardmen big toad-like wizard) in gold? No place to play.

5.Give way,veterans!
Veterans cant play there without reservation.

Who want to play hobby center?

I was asked to stop playing in my not FLGS in Osaka because my army is full of non GW miniatures (tho it was not an GW official store in any way) that "could confuse japanese players" so these three restrictions do not surprise me at all if we take them together. After all we don´t want our future drones deviating from official fluff lest they find there is a world out there that doesn´t revolve around GW.

Still I don´t think it´s GW Japan policy, looks more like something local to preserve the "harmony" of the manager AKA I don´t want to bother with things out of the manual so blanket ban on everything save for the main target that it´s to target newbies.

M.

You had bad experience it seems.
I'll explain about "BAN" later.

H.B.M.C. wrote:Colour and word bannings?

You can't say "wound"? WTF?

This requires further explanation.

What killlazy said is right. Sorry for my bad English :p

Swordwind wrote:If Japan's religious scene is what I think it's like, then painting a Slann like the Buddha is not the craziest they've done to a religious figure, and I doubt anyone would care.

Indeed. We mostly see religion as "good fluff".
Like this.
"Bible? Nice book! Lets make game/manga/anime from it! Hmm....What about busty holy angels fight tentacles?"


About banning.
We were told its "world-wide" policy.
Also,there is "Code of Iron"
1.There is only one society. Help newbies.

2.Bring measure,template,rulebook,dice.

3.Do not to be bystander.You may not watch other people playing.

4.Do not use maliciously converted model.
( Maybe,Slann is violating this?)

5.You must prime in black/white at least for playing.(so no grey/shiny-metal)

6.No violence.

I was told this is "World-Wide" policy.
And there is English version of "Code of Iron"
Hey,anyone have seen "Code of Iron" in your GW official shop?

Well I guess from a UK perspective, GW shops would at the least encourage helping beginners and bringing rulebooks, dice etc. Not sure about 'enforce' - I don't imagine GW stores in the UK go as far as to actively prevent someone from going in the store because they forgot their dice or something.

But as for the rest - definitely not worldwide policy, I'm sure. If GW did enforce a policy of no bare plastic models in their stores, then they would soon be fairly empty places to be.

And as far as I know, there isn't a documented Code of Conduct policy or anything like that (but don't take my word for it - I haven't stepped foot in a GW store for some time now)

Since this is a thread about the the closure of 71% of Japanese GW's, I'd really appreciate it if we could focus the discussion on Japan.

How can GW expand their exposure in the Japanese market now that they are dramatically reducing their presence here?

If I was GW I make a huge (by Japanese standards) flagship store in Akihabara and close down every other shop. I would concentrate efforts on making that shop the face of GW in Japan. Akihabara is the biggest hub of geeks in the world. The WORLD. A good many of them are gundam/airplane/doll/car/historical modellers. There are modeling supply shops that are enormous, well stocked, and rammed with customers. Jimbocho, really? Tabletop games popular with all that bookstore foot traffic? Why the hell would you open 7 shops without having a truly solid foundation in a new market.

Anyplace outside of the UK confuses and scares GW and their employees, that why they always set up shops in East Middle of Nowhere

I don't understand how GW intend to market themselves in Japan now. If the free rules and codex PDFs are being replaced with expensive books it prevents people from downloading stuff to have a try.

Kilkrazy wrote:I don't understand how GW intend to market themselves in Japan now. If the free rules and codex PDFs are being replaced with expensive books it prevents people from downloading stuff to have a try.

Man... if GW decided to go with just free rules and codex PDFs overall - a la Infinity or Malifaux - I'd be willing to bet we'd see an influx of players.

To be on topic - 'World Wide Policy'? 'Code of Iron'?

Really, no bystanders?

And what's defined as a 'maliciously converted model'?

And... black/white primer only for playing purposes?

This is... I don't... I can't tell if this is true, or if this is some extremely elaborate prank being pulled by our Japanese Dakkanauts.

Sir Motor wrote:

Ledabot wrote:

JOHIRA wrote:

Sir Motor wrote:2.Word banning
We, experience player, use some English based word. Like "Wounds". But In hobby centre, we can’t use it. We must call it "Ki-du"(Translated version "wounds"). We can’t play in English. Even a word.

Holy cow! Really? That's crazy. I wish I had actually played a game so I could see that.

3.Color banning
You painted slann(lizardmen big toad-like wizard) in gold? No place to play.

Wow, that's even crazier.

2.
Our flgs is run by foreigners and they are always taking to each other in um. I don’t know what the language is.... It’s not Japanese or Chinese though.

3.
I’m guessing that is because it resembles Buddha?

2.Korean?
3.Nope. Reason was fluff. as long as I heard.

Miguelsan wrote:

Sir Motor wrote:2.Word banning
We,experience player,use some English based word. Like "Wounds". But In hobby center,we cant use it. We must call it "Ki-du"(Translated version "wounds"). We cant play in English.Even a word.

3.Color banning
You painted slann(lizardmen big toad-like wizard) in gold? No place to play.

5.Give way,veterans!
Veterans cant play there without reservation.

Who want to play hobby center?

I was asked to stop playing in my not FLGS in Osaka because my army is full of non GW miniatures (tho it was not an GW official store in any way) that "could confuse japanese players" so these three restrictions do not surprise me at all if we take them together. After all we don´t want our future drones deviating from official fluff lest they find there is a world out there that doesn´t revolve around GW.

Still I don´t think it´s GW Japan policy, looks more like something local to preserve the "harmony" of the manager AKA I don´t want to bother with things out of the manual so blanket ban on everything save for the main target that it´s to target newbies.

M.

You had bad experience it seems.
I'll explain about "BAN" later.

H.B.M.C. wrote:Colour and word bannings?

You can't say "wound"? WTF?

This requires further explanation.

What killlazy said is right. Sorry for my bad English :p

Swordwind wrote:If Japan's religious scene is what I think it's like, then painting a Slann like the Buddha is not the craziest they've done to a religious figure, and I doubt anyone would care.

Indeed. We mostly see religion as "good fluff".
Like this.
"Bible? Nice book! Lets make game/manga/anime from it! Hmm....What about busty holy angels fight tentacles?"


About banning.
We were told its "world-wide" policy.
Also,there is "Code of Iron"
1.There is only one society. Help newbies.

2.Bring measure,template,rulebook,dice.

3.Do not to be bystander.You may not watch other people playing.

4.Do not use maliciously converted model.
( Maybe,Slann is violating this?)

5.You must prime in black/white at least for playing.(so no grey/shiny-metal)

6.No violence.

I was told this is "World-Wide" policy.
And there is English version of "Code of Iron"
Hey,anyone have seen "Code of Iron" in your GW official shop?

There is no such thing. You've been lied to.

Never heard of it, until you mentioned it. THATS how world wide it is.

Tell me more about the busty angels fighting tenticles....


I'm interested in that.

General Hobbs wrote:

Sidstyler wrote:Maybe you're right, maybe they do have to charge more because it costs them more to operate in other countries. Still doesn't change the fact that they're asking for ludicrous amounts of money for little plastic men, and that the full retail price is more than what most people are willing to pay. They can go on insisting that their prices are reasonable or that they have to charge what they do, and they can go on closing stores because that's not enough to convince people to shop there.

Like it's been said though, it sounds like these stores had other problems besides ridiculous prices.

What are they supposed to do, give the figures away for free? GW's not a charity, they have to make money.

It is this sense of entitlement that is ruining the world. If you can't afford to to be in the hobby, go play chess.

And if they want to make money they can do it just like every other fething business makes money: sell their products at a price I'm willing to pay, or barring that, come up with some other way to get me into their store, like a sale or a BOGO promotion, or something, because clearly what they're doing now isn't good enough to get traffic, is it? You tell me GW's not a charity but they sure as feth act like one if they expect me to buy from their stores and willingly pay more money for the same product just out of the goodness of my heart, and it doesn't help when people like you give people like me crap online and keep using the word "entitlement" ad nauseam, seemingly without any idea what the feth it really means if you think I'm acting "entitled" in any god-damned way in this thread.

Yeah, I agree. GW is ruining their business because they're acting like they're entitled to my money. They should stop doing that and start being a real business, acting like they're actually interested in selling their product instead of acting like a charity and expect people to give without getting anything in return.

gr1m_dan wrote:I happily buy lots of GW and generally don't moan but this is the only reason why we pay so much. For a crap load of stores most of us don't use.

Yeah, it's what I like to call the "hobby tax".

AesSedai wrote:Why the hell would you open 7 shops without having a truly solid foundation in a new market.

That's what I wanna know, it sounds really stupid and short-sighted for a monolithic multi-million pound corporation to piss away money like that. They spent money opening seven stores, but apparently didn't do much research in the area before the fact to find out if these stores would actually be profitable. So this is why GW needs our money so badly, so they can afford to spread stores in a selected area like a shotgun blast and just cross their fingers that one of them will be profitable, and if not then they'll just close them all and try again somewhere else! lol

AesSedai wrote:I would concentrate efforts on making that shop the face of GW in Japan. Akihabara is the biggest hub of geeks in the world. The WORLD. A good many of them are gundam/airplane/doll/car/historical modellers. There are modeling supply shops that are enormous, well stocked, and rammed with customers.

I dunno, maybe they saw all that competition and got scared? But then again they haven't been afraid to open up shop in other areas that already have an independent retailer present in an attempt to force them out of business. Personally I don't see GW being too popular with a crowd who already have access to some of the best, most detailed kits in the world. I like the new Dark Eldar and maybe one or two other things GW has done, but as far as quality goes they don't even hold a candle to Kotobukiya, for example. I imagine opening up a store there and being shunned by the so-called "biggest geeks in the WORLD" would be pretty humbling.

1.There is only one society. Help newbies.

2.Bring measure,template,rulebook,dice.

3.Do not to be bystander.You may not watch other people playing.

4.Do not use maliciously converted model.
( Maybe,Slann is violating this?)

5.You must prime in black/white at least for playing.(so no grey/shiny-metal)

6.No violence.

1. Sounds...weird? Is that supposed to be like "There is no other hobby than the GW Hobby"? As for "help newbies" I thought that was the staff's job, to harass and pressure new blood into spending entire paychecks on Space Marines the minute they walk in the door.

2. Reasonable enough, this should be a requirement really.

3. Uh...that sounds like it would hurt GW more than anything. People playing in the store is like advertising for them isn't it, wouldn't you want people to come in your store and see the game being played?

4. ...kinda makes sense? Depends on GW's idea of "malicious". Sculpting dicks on all your models obviously wouldn't fly.

5. I'm guessing you mean no unpainted models, basically? Sounds about right for a GW store. Although there is such a thing as grey primer, but I guess since GW doesn't make one they just assume it doesn't exist.

6. No violence! Let us play our WAR GAMES in peace! But yeah kind of a no-brainer I guess.

Some of this stuff sounds like standard policy at GW stores, but the "color bans" and other nonsense is unique to Japan I think.

Sir Motor wrote:"Bible? Nice book! Lets make game/manga/anime from it! Hmm....What about busty holy angels fight tentacles?"

Awesome line, sir.

3.Do not to be bystander.You may not watch other people playing.

I used to do this somewhat in the Machida store, and nothing was ever said to me. But then, nothing was ever said to me at all. I sometimes felt like the players were a little uncomfortable with me being there. I assumed maybe they were shy, but maybe they were afraid of being told off for encouraging me to watch?

And there is English version of "Code of Iron"
Hey,anyone have seen "Code of Iron" in your GW official shop?

I've never heard of anything like that in the US.

The ban on watching GW games being played is so crazy, it might turn out global GW strategy within a year.
Guess with all those restrictions, in Japan, it is not called "The Hobby" but "The Penal Camp"

Just be grateful it was Iron Hand.
Could so easily have gone in the other direction where play took place in the style of one of those crazy Japanese tv game shows!

Those little crocodile clips clamped onto the scrotum and 240v sent through the wire if you roll snakes' eyes.

Roll to Wound, but the dice are in a bucket of scorpions.

I know I'm late to the party for complaining, but GW must still think it's 2007 based on the difference between their UK and Japan prices.

Does anyone remember when GW started putting the six-language packaging on figures so we can find out what year their international office thinks it is?

I'm sure that's part of the problem.

The Japanese economy has had about a decade of static or falling prices (deflation) while the UK economy has had about 30% inflation in the same time.

However, the Yen has been stronger than ever against the £ for a couple of years.

GW's twin policies of "ignore currency exchange rates" and "raise prices faster than inflation" means they are trying to sell massively overpriced models in Japan.

Kilkrazy wrote:GW's twin policies of "ignore currency exchange rates" and "raise prices faster than inflation" means they are trying to sell massively overpriced models in Japan.

In Japan?

Well, it's horrendous for the Japanese. And Australians. And New Zealanders. And the South Americans.


It's merely awful for the rest of us.

Well, it's awful for those who for whatever reason still choose to buy GW products. I'm quite happy with Spartan Games and Privateer Press, and am looking into expanding my collection with other manufacturers. I just don't know what to play next... KoW? Infinity? Get back into Battletech?

I seriously don't understand GW. It's like they don't care one iota about long term viability, just "How can we increase profits this year?" without a care as to how it may effect profits next year or five years from now. They don't seem to understand the word "sustainability".

Interesting point
Always being told that Hasegawa prices are so horrendus becaus ethe pound is so much weaker againt the Yen than a few years ago.

If so GW products should be much cheaper in Japan?

Both can't be right
wait... am also being told that Hasegawa are the Ferrari's of the modelworld so maybe they both are correct.

Taking the Dark Eldar warrior box as the sample data point, GW's Pound Sterling to Japanese Yen exchange rate is 1 to 216.

The first source that I found said that the exchange rate wasn't that high since 2007, but according to Google Finance just now the exchange rate for July 25, 2008 was 214 Yen to the Pound. The current exchange rate's about 127 according to the same source, and hasn't been above 165 since 2008.

So, allowing for the rounding of prices to nice even numbers, the problem with the prices is just that they appear to be based on an almost three year old exchange rate. (Assuming that GW doesn't inflate the prices any to make its Japanese customers pay extra for living on an island. )

Edit: I wrote 161 for the exchange rate earlier. I was completely misreading the Google Finance page. My fault, not Google's.

BrassScorpion wrote: just bashing GW over their prices doesn't really add to the conversation.

Like those guys have anything meaningful to add to the conversation.

Like those guys have anything meaningful to add to the conversation

*ahem*

"Code of Iron" what a funny name. Number 3 is the best of the lot, I guess GW is trying to bring fast food industry antics to the (thunder) HOOOOBBY (/thunder)

1. Enter the shop.
2. Buy whatever the staff is pushing today.
3. Be kicked out of the shop.
4. ???
5. GW profits and you wonder where the Warlock goes in your Ork army.

Number 4 is also fun, what does malicious means? Common sense would say that it is modelling for advantage or using non GW parts, but going back to silly point number 3, it could very well mean anything the shop manager does not like.

Being a customer with a huge sense of "entitlement" that likes buying little soldiers it´s me not GW or any other company the one that gets to choose what figure goes into my army. I´ll concede that any official (or not) shop can tell me that I can´t play in their premises but then they better not hold their breath waiting for me to make a purchase there.

M.

Worglock wrote:

BrassScorpion wrote: just bashing GW over their prices doesn't really add to the conversation.

Like those guys have anything meaningful to add to the conversation.

Added a lot more than you fething did just now.

"Bashing" GW over prices is the conversation, because I have trouble thinking of any other reason why GW would have to close five stores all at once. It's obvious they weren't profitable enough or they would still be open. Why weren't they profitable? They didn't sell enough product. Why didn't they sell enough product? Because it supposedly cost the Japanese twice as much to buy locally as opposed to ordering online. Apparently the prices were unreasonable or else people would be buying from the store instead.

I really don't get what the hell else we're supposed to talk about here if not GW's backwards-ass business practices. Should we be praising them for this instead? "Yay, good job! You're banning people from buying online, and then closing stores so they have nowhere to buy product at all!"

Paying double UK prices is nuts anywhere, but in Japan GW faces more competition than it does anywhere else in the world, so without the option to buy online now that we're under embargo, GW might as well give up and abandon the market altogether. All that money they must have spent on the new Japanese homepage will be for nothing. I used to buy from Maelstrom but I would sooner eat my own head than pay the absurd prices charged by the handful of remaining retailers in the country.

The convoluted, labyrinthine plots of some anime, barely held together by slender threads of reason stretched taut to breaking point, make more sense than GW policies.

Too bad they are closing, but it's not the end of the world. What does a room at the local bunkasenta run in Tokyo? It can't be that hard to find a place to play. We manage to get by without a G.W store here in Aichi just fine. The mail order ban has made a lot of guys mad. Mostly us gaijin. Most of the Japanese gamers in these parts had already switched to Warmahordes a long time ago and don't care!